One of the upcoming Aston Martin Rapides. Four doors, so should be practical enough for most uses. I’d probably have to live on foraged foods to pay the insurance and servicing though.
I would be torn between two fairly unusual choices. Here is the car I have wanted since I was a kid:
Avanti
For current production cars one of my neighbors has this:
Saleen
The sound alone of the Saleen is just this amazing throaty growl. It is basically a standard Mustang re-engineered into a beautiful high performance machine. At just under100k it is also not so outrageously expensive that I feel guilty daydreaming.
This is easy! It’s the car I have right now!
I just got a new Skoda Roomster (<waits for American chorus of disgust to quieten down>).
OK, the looks took a while to grow on me, but anyway, I love this car! - the 1.4TDi engine is actually surprisingly perky and has more effective grunt than the 2 litre turbo diesel in my previous car (Citroen Xsara Picasso).
It’s got bags of space inside, it’s got everything else I need - chilled air, MP3-capable stereo , airbags out the wazoo. Best of all, I get 57 miles per gallon without even trying - or 60+ if I drive really carefully.
And yes, I wouldn’t want anything flashy or more expensive. Can I throw the spare change at my mortgage?
Easy question: A 1938 Talbot-Lago Teardrop Coupe. The last one I saw go at auction went for about $3 million.
Barring that, my second choice would be a 1938 Lincoln Zephyr Convertible.
And I like the '39 Lincoln Zephyr Coupe hardtop even more. Scroll down for a rear look.
1969 Oldsmobile 442. Silver with black interior and black hood stripes. Exactly like this. (Second one from the top.)
The kids would just have to deal with sitting in the back seat and the wife could catch a ride to work with a friend. I have always wanted one, and as Og as my witness I will have one someday. Oh, yes I will.
Well, if I could get a chauffeur, a house with an appropriate garage, and funds to maintain them all, I’d want a classic Rolls; a Phantom IV or a Silver Cloud I
but since the Lottery Gods have decided I’m to win my millions ten bucks at a time, I might like a Honda FCX
I think we’d just get a newer model of the Dodge 1500 Quad Cab w/8 ft bed (rhino spray on bed liner) and towing package.
That’s what Mr. AdoptaMom currently drives and the 8’ bed is perfect for hauling construction material and tools, it pulls his boat easily, it seats six and is comfy for family trips, it rides well, and because he got the construction model it has rubber flooring which we can just hose out when it’s gross. He’s been very pleased with the reliability, the insurance is reasonable, and the gas mileage is tolerable.
Yeah, we’d get another one!
1957 Chevy, 350 cubes, 4 spd.
I just love that car. I also love 1968 Goats, 442’s, Hemi Chargers, 440 GTX’s, Super Birds, and L-88 Vettes.
But the good ol’ 1957 Chevy
speaks of another time…another era. A more innocent time. A happier time.
My dad had one (not a 350. He had a punched out 283 (292) that could carry the mail like nobody’s bidness.) It was yellow with a white top and side panel highlight.
Ah, the beach at Lake Nokomis. Enough fuckin’ horsepower to make the Earth shake. Room enough in each car for 6 people comfortably. Hoods up, admiring a new six-pack or high rise maniford and full race cam. Big slicks on the back, and mags all around.
Brake stands, Credence Clearwater, and Old Milwaukee.
Fuck, I’m old.
Fully loaded with every accessory possible Lexus IS (manual). But I’m buying it for my 30th birthday present for myself anyway.
maniford = manifold
Sacrilege. Mentioning f-o-r-d in a post about 57 Chevs.
Porsche 959, in metallic silver.
Group C homologation version, not the detuned production version.
1985 Honda accord
why? Because it was my first car, and I bought the haynes manual and learned to take it apart (and put it back together) in the dark.
Because it took me over mountains, across deserts, through Canadian winters (Started with out being plugged in at -40, while other cars around me, that were plugged in were going “meh…”.
because the driver’s seat fit me
because I bought it for $200 at a police auction in 1996
because I spent less than $1000 over its life time on parts and repairs
because I watched it “turn over” the 200,000 Km mark, and still seemed raring to go, if a bit rusty
because I miss it (it would still be my car if it hadn’t been rear ended and “written off” by insurance co
because it got great gas milage
and so on
regards
FML
Hmmm…
How about…
The Shelby Series 1?
Or maybe a 2007 Porsche Cayman?
Well, sure they’re practical, safe, ho-hum family cars, but they* look * pretty cool, too! 
I want a 1963 Cadillac Fleetwood convertible with real wood dash, electric windows, tilt electric seats, automatic headlight dimmer, leather upholstery, big 429 cid engine with Carter aluminum AFB carb and dual exhaust, retrofitted with a later 60’s edition Turbo-Hydramatic transmission with a mild B & M shift improver kit in it. Milled heads and hardened valve seats for leadless gasoline. Brake master upgraded to a high-quality dual-reservoir. Painted carefully with 39 coats of pearly metallic green lacquer. Aftermarket worm gear with somewhat tighter lack of play in the steering, but stock nerveless 1963-vintage power steering. Aftermarket sound system with MP3 player hidden behind the AM radio. Modern replacement for the freon (r-12) air conditioning. Custom wheel rims to accomodate today’s tires (not too many H-78-14 tires being sold today). Seat belts and shoulder straps from a later-edition Caddy.
A Mini Cooper S. We were looking at them quite seriously a year or so back, but the dealer wanted 50k+ on road which we thought was insane.
I’d have one specially made. Something along the lines of Bill Harrah’s Ferrari-powered Jeep Wagoneer, but with a better starting point. Maybe a slightly larger than normal Subaru WRX with Ferrari V-12, all wheel drive and some other custom stuff. Or maybe a all wheel drive BMW 7 series. I’ll have to think about it some more, but there would only be one in the world.
I’d like to take the body of 1980s Jeep CJ and redo the interior to look more like the 2007 models (Cloth seats, MP3 player, etc). That’s it.
Thankfully, I have a 2000 model, which is sort of the halfway compromise.